XDC Ventures, the investment arm of the XDC Network, has acquired Contour Network, a digital trade finance platform originally founded by a consortium of global banks including HSBC, Standard Chartered, BNP Paribas, Citi, DBS, ING, and Bangkok Bank.
The acquisition positions the XDC Network as a central player in the tokenization of trade finance and the use of stablecoins for regulated cross-border settlement.
Under its new structure, Contour will form the foundation of a Stablecoin Lab, a new initiative by XDC Ventures designed to help banks and corporates issue, settle, and manage stablecoin transactions in compliance with international standards.
“By combining Contour’s global LC consortium with the XDC Network’s hybrid blockchain and Web3 ecosystem, we’re creating the most powerful institutional gateway for tokenized trade finance and cross-border settlement,” said Atul Khekade, Co-founder of the XDC Network and XDC Ventures.
Contour’s existing network already digitizes Letters of Credit (LCs) and has reduced settlement times from days to hours for global trade transactions.
Its integration into XDC Network will extend these efficiencies to on-chain stablecoin-based settlements.
Circle’s USDC, which recently gained support on XDC, will serve as a regulated stablecoin for these pilots, allowing faster and lower-cost transaction processing across regions.
According to Ritesh Kakkad, Co-Founder of XDC Network and XDC Ventures, the goal is to provide financial institutions with compliant settlement rails and programmable liquidity tools.
“Banks need settlement rails, treasury optimization, and compliance frameworks. We’re building all three,” he said.
XDC Ventures also announced plans to invite strategic investors specializing in compliance, risk management, and global trade networks to expand Contour’s reach.
The company said pilots under the Stablecoin Lab will focus on developing APIs for stablecoin-based LC settlement, enabling near real-time processing and improved treasury management for banks and corporates.
Parth Mahajan, Market Development Lead for Contour, said the partnership will allow the network to scale its operations more rapidly.
“XDC Network’s ecosystem and capabilities will enable us to expand to new markets faster and allow us to continuously innovate and deepen our trade finance product offerings,” he said.
With integration into frameworks such as Singapore’s IMDA TradeTrust and partners like SBI Japan, Deutsche Telekom, and Circle, XDC Network aims to bridge traditional finance and blockchain under a compliant, institutional-grade structure. Immediate priorities include launching stablecoin pilots with consortium members, linking Contour’s Corda workflows to XDC’s blockchain rails, and engaging regulators across the U.S., EU, GCC, and Asia.
Under its new structure, Contour will form the foundation of a Stablecoin Lab, a new initiative by XDC Ventures designed to help banks and corporates issue, settle, and manage stablecoin transactions in compliance with international standards.